Today is the last part of our studio tour!  The kitchen was the biggest endeavor and took the longest to finish. In the construction phase we had to completely demo and move a wall! Then after we moved in it took a few months of getting settled before we could focus on the kitchen. My friend Kendra Smoot sent me an inspiration photo early on and I LOVED it–it became the basis of most of the design decisions. I wanted a kitchen that was functional and beautiful. See the before and afters after the jump.

Kitchen Area

Here are some of the “BEFORE” pictures. For whatever reason the original wall was not straight. When we were figuring out construction plans Kendra pointed out that it would look strange if we didn’t take care of it. It added a significant expense to the project but was definitely worth it to have such a pretty kitchen. The flooring was just linoleum on plywood. We decided to just remove it all and ended up with the original wood underneath it that was in decent condition. We decided to paint it white.

For the cabinets we used Ikea Sektion kitchen cabinets and had them professionally sanded and painted a mint green. I used a different color than the photos because Jenny Komenda suggested it would be a little “happier” to pick something more mint-y. So I chose five colors and tested samples and we ended up going with a really light mint green. I wanted a clean look on the cabinets and didn’t want hardware so we installed the push-open mechanisms from Ikea.

When I was planning the kitchen I knew I wanted a dishwasher in the kitchen because it’s so hard to prepare food if you know its going to take 30 minutes cleaning up. I really wanted to be able to do group meals together so that was important to me. We got one from Ikea with the front that blends in with the cabinets. We’ve only been using it for a couple months but it is so awesome! (You can tell I’ve been living in San Francisco too long when I’m obsessed with having a dishwasher.)  The marble was a slab I chose from a big marble warehouse. I sent Jenny five options and she helped me pick one. This is when its so nice to have a designer working with you on a project. You’re making so many expensive decisions its so nice to have someone guide you.

The brass wall lighting we bought from Joss & Main (Kendra found them) and the vintage brass faucet is from Ebay, the Mortar and Pestal and Olivewood accessories are from William Sonoma. Vintage cutting boards from France.

Dining Area

The light fixture is huge and really makes the space. Jenny found it for a really good deal and I loved it immediately. The dining table and chairs are from Design Within Reach. The table looks so pretty in the space (those legs!) and I liked the Thonet chairs because they look so airy and show off the design of the table legs.

Behind the table we had a bar from our last studio kitchen so we turned it into a coffee bar. I got an Espresso machine from William Sonoma and everyone takes turns making the team lattes every morning. It’s really fun!

Photos by Paul Ferney for Oh Happy Day
Styling by Kendra Smoot